Plug Cleaner

[guzzisteve]

Anyone here use a spark plug cleaner, abrasive media & air. Not that I change them that often but old pair are accumulating. Afterwards soak them in kerosene. 

[Idontwantapickle]

I do. Just gotta inspect very closely for remaining grit.

[Cross-tie Walker]

I usually just spring for a new pair

[Rough Edge racing]

Anyone here use a spark plug cleaner, abrasive media & air. Not that I change them that often but old pair are accumulating. Afterwards soak them in kerosene.

 Deposits? Engine using oil? 

[OldMojo]

Sure do. They're indispensable for working on 2 stroke boat motors, lawn equipment and whatever else frequently fouls plugs by design.

Mine has a non-media blast setting for clearing the grit, but I always hit them with the blow gun afterwards.

[Moto]

I don't, yet. Does anyone have the Harbor Freight one? Good choice?

Moto

[guzzisteve]

I got mine at OReilly's cause it's US made and assembled in Taiwan.

I don't burn any oil in any of them but don't change them much and the 1100 single plug motor leaves a vertical stripe on the plug. I've turned down the accelerator pump mode on the EV so it's a bit better.
I remember my brother soaking them to loosen up the grit that gets stuck.

[Don G]

I have an old 1960's champion plug blaster, I like the feature of being able to test the plug under pressure to see how it sparks, you would be surprised at the number of plugs that I have thrown out due to the fire going out at about 120LBS of air pressure ! DonG

[Lannis]

I have an old 1960's champion plug blaster, I like the feature of being able to test the plug under pressure to see how it sparks, you would be surprised at the number of plugs that I have thrown out due to the fire going out at about 120LBS of air pressure ! DonG

I'd love to have one of those, I strongly suspect many problems I've had over the years have been due to a plug that wouldn't fire under pressure.    I'll start looking.

Meanwhile, spark plugs are one of the strangest mechanical/electrical things I know.   They're build tough - if you've ever tried to beat one apart to get the part that threads into the head so as to make a compression fitting or something, you know how tough.   

Thick ceramic, strong steel, and getting hit with 20K volts.   And YET ... and yet ... sometimes if you gas-foul one, just get it wet with gas and try to make it fire under compression ... it'll foul and never fire again.   You can scrape it, clean it, light it on fire, and nothing but a new plug will get the bike started.

At any rate, I have HUNDREDS of plugs in buckets all the way back from Yamaha two-stroke days, through BritBike days, and continuing today.   If I were pretty sure that a spark plug cleaner would really and truly make a spark plug fully functional again, and I could test the fact beyond a doubt, I'd never have to buy another spark plug in my life, nor my sons either ....

Lannis

[Triple Jim]

I've been blasting plugs for about 40 years, using one of the little cast aluminum blasters that you can still buy.  As stated above, you have to get all the grit out, and some plugs make that easier than others.  The tough ones require the use of my small jeweler's screwdriver that I've ground thin so it's a very small blade.  Also, I file the center electrode so its end is square with a sharp edge at its perimeter.  Then the plug behaves like new as far as I've been able to tell.

[Chuck in Indiana]

I can add to this a little. I, too, have been cleaning aircraft plugs for like forever. When they are $42 each and up.. you can afford to clean them. I have an aircraft plug tester that I've converted (naturally) to test 14MM plugs, too. You would be surprised to see how many plugs fail when you pressurize them. Some, out of the box.  A new Champion cost me a coil on a lawnmower one time.. acted just like a coil going out.
But I digress.
What I'm really trying to say is if you have the "proper" media in your blaster, the abrasive is too large to get caught in a plug. Regular bead blast media doesn't get it. Don't use that.. you will never get it *all* out.

[Wayne Orwig]

Propane torch. Heat the porcelain red hot. Blow off the soot, and file the electrodes.

[Rough Edge racing]

Propane torch. Heat the porcelain red hot. Blow off the soot, and file the electrodes.

  Ah, the snowmobile trick. .......I have several newer pro model chainsaws....With carefully measured fuel/oil mixes the spark plugs look as clean as 4 strokes ...
 
   

[Ncdan]

Run them until they start breaking down then replace them with new ones. To important a part for anything less. If they go bad prematurely, fix the issue then replace with new plugs and the best grade money can buy.

[guzzisteve]

The media they sent said it was non-silica. Looking at it under the magnifying glass it's shiny chunks, black. Possible ceramic.